Ministers must ban the sale of energy drinks to under-16s

There is currently a childhood diet and obesity epidemic in the UK. The government needs to act decisively and take tough action to tackle the growing problem. The soft drinks industry levy, or “sugar tax”, has been an important and welcome tool to help fight the problem.

However, with one in five children obese by the age of 11, there is still much to do. One way I believe the government could help tackle this problem is by prohibiting the sale of energy drinks to anyone under the age of 16. That is why I recently led a Westminster Hall debate on the subject, to set out the evidence.